THE BEAT GOES ON

Face of the Malaysian music scene in the '90s, Dato' Sheila Majid, shares her memories as Queen of Jazz-as her daughter, Kayda Aziz, steps out of the shadow into her own limelight.

"There were so many that I can't even remember," Dato' Sheila Majid reminisces. The entire room is silent as Sheila Majid appears deep in thought, mentally parsing through the illustrious career that brought her to her current standing as Malaysia's Jazz Queen. Her daughter, Kayda, born Khaleda Aziz, a growing musician in her own right, observing her mother.

"I think the first moment that impacted me was my Legenda concert at Stadium Negara. That pulled 10,000 people and was sold out. It was also when I felt like running away," she recounts. "But when I heard the roar of my fans, it dawned on me that if I were to run away, who was going to go out and sing?"

With a vast discography of 25 albums that dates from 'Dimensi Baru' (1985) to the 'Boneka' (2017) album, including multiple compilation albums, it comes as a real surprise to hear that the indomitable star, Sheila Majid, faces performance anxiety.

"I learned to tell myself, 'It's just one time, you go out there and you give it your all. This is your one chance. That's the mantra I use if I don't feel up for performing, or if it's a large audience. At the end of the day, if people have paid to see me, then Sheila Majid will perform."

A SPITTING IMAGE

It's all hustle and bustle a week later at a quaint vintage dental clinic in Petaling Street, where WeeChee, stylist extraordinaire, moves both mother and daughter into edgy poses at the photoshoot. Dressed in all black against the retro setting, they make for an ultra cool duo. Capturing both Sheila and Kayda is an art of creating the right space, at the right time, in the right setting. It's worked together from the ground up on an amalgamation of things that would befit the two powerful personalities set to enter the space.